Can you hunt with a BB gun?

Today’s posting is inspired by a question we received last week. “I’m looking to buy my first bb gun. Should I look for a combo (bb and pellet) or should I look for one or the other? Are bb’s less accurate in a combo? Also, at what power can you start killing a squirrel?”

I consider this to be three separate questions, and that’s how I will address it. Since killing squirrels seems to be the ultimate objective, let’s start with that.

1. BB guns ARE NOT for killing squirrels!A BB gun is not a good hunting gun for many reasons. First, some BB guns (such as the Daisy Red Ryder) are too weak to reliably kill anything larger than a small insect. When we hunt, we want to kill as quickly as we can. BB guns don’t do that. The second reason BB guns are bad for hunting is the BB, itself. It’s made of steel and, therefore, does not deform in game. Deformation causes tissue damage, speeding death, and a steel BB is as far from that ideal as you can get. Finally, a steel BB is too small in caliber to do enough damage, no matter how fast it travels. Even when it goes 750 f.p.s., a speed some airguns can achieve, it’s still too slow to do the job in a humane way. I consider a .177 caliber pellet too small for hunting, but there are a great number of airgun hunters who prove me wrong all the time.

For hunting, you need this!You need an accurate pellet that will penetrate to a vital part of your quarry and not over-penetrate. A pure lead pellet will deform the best, and deformation causes tissue damage (good) and expends energy in the quarry (also good). Synthetic, lead-free pellets often travel completely through the animal, exiting the other side (not good) and leaving a painful, but not immediately deadly wound (definitely not good). So, the animal runs off to hide and may suffer a slow and painful death. BBs are as bad as synthetic pellets when it comes to inflicting non-lethal wounds.

Do NOT discipline animals with a BB gun!This is just cruel. Even a weak BB gun can break the skin and start a septic wound in a small animal. Find another way to make your point.

2. Are BBs less accurate in a combo?This refers to a gun that can shoot both BBs and pellets, like the Crosman 760 that so many airgunners love. However, the question is stated backwards. BBs aren’t accurate in ANYTHING except the Daisy 499! All other BB guns are area-fire guns, at best! What is less accurate in a combo gun is pellets! Because the bore has to be made for both .177 pellets and .172 steel BBs, it can’t possibly shoot pellets as accurately as a dedicated barrel. So, if you plan to hunt with certain airguns, it would be wise to select one that is not a combination gun. If that’s all you have, limit your shooting distance to the range at which you can hit an American quarter (a 1″/25mm circle) every time. And, use lead pellets!

3. Should I look for a combo?The decision is yours, alone, but here are some reasons to buy combos. You like shooting and may not always have pellets readily available. BBs are cheaper, so if your gun shoots both, you have the best of both worlds. Or, you want the fastest BB gun you can buy. The combos are usually at the high end of power for BB guns. Or, maybe you are just fascinated that a gun can shoot both types of ammo. I know people who will buy them for that reason, alone.

The bottom line is that I do not recommend hunting game with any BB gun. For hunting, I usually recommend a pellet gun shooting lead pellets in .22 caliber. I know a lot of hunters will disagree with my opinion, but this reader asked, so I told him.

4. At what power can you reliably kill a squirrel?I’ll tell you a little secret. Squirrels are very tough critters! Plenty of hunters hit squirrels with 40-grain lead bullets from a .22 long rifle and still lose their game. Squirrels are very tough animals, especially when compared to similar-sized game such as rats. A rat dies twice as easily as a squirrel, in my experience. I would recommend a .22 caliber rifle that shoots no less than 12 foot-pounds at the muzzle. Personally, I prefer a 25 foot-pound .22 pellet rifle for squirrels. I like good head shots as opposed to body shots, and I stay within the range at which I know I can hit a quarter. One of my favorite hunting air rifles is a .22-caliber AirForce Talon SS shooting JSB Exact pellets.

To get my hunting license in Germany, I had to pass both a written test and a shooting test. It took weeks of classes and study to prepare for that test, but I learned a lot about animals, anatomy and bullet placement. I wish we had the same requirement in this country, so hunters would know something about the game they go after before they go afield. Short of that, I guess the best thing to do is to read about your sport as you practice it.

88 thoughts on “Can you hunt with a BB gun?”

Hey BB, Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and have a Happy New Year! I asked a question on the Dec. 23rd. posting about a good distance to sight in a scoped Benjamin 392. 10 yards, 15 yards? I still would be delighted with a response. Sorry for being a pest.

Believe it or not, I did answer your question on December 23. Apparently, I hit the “close window” button instead of the Login and Publish button. I have caught myself doing that before, but this time I missed it.

I would sight in a 392 to strike the aim point at 20 yards. I think you’ll be back on the aim point at 26 yards or so. At all other ranges you will be low. Between 20 and 26 yards, your pellet will be above the aim point, but so close that it might as well be on the aim point.

Excellent post! Most of us have had to learn much of this by experience, sometimes to the detriment and unnecessary suffering of the animals we are attempting to eliminate. I agree wholehertedly with the choice of the Talon SS in .22 cal. and I have used the Beeman pellets, but have you tried the Logun Penetrators yet. I think they work exceptionaly well in the Talon.CWI

Thanks for info, I was going to zero in at 35 yds. How consistant is the CFx? I have been doing fairly well with the open sites but hard to get a clean kill on small bird 50 – 60 yds. The mocking birds around here are bruised and keeping thier distance!

DSW,Thanks on the CF-X info.I asked because I thought a long scope would be a problem to load the ammo.Hey DSW sorry for being a pest but does the scope come in a mini size and doesnt lose features.And does it fit the cf-x.Also I dont like high mounted scopes so do this scopes go high mounted.What do you think?Please anwer me this question and BB you can anwer me too.Thanks.Hernan (GAMO CF-X GUY as dsw calls me}

I’m new to the airgun sport and by no means a “pro”, just a guy that bought a pellet gun. However, Like you I prefer to keep the scope as low as functionally possible and I believe that makes thing simpler for drop/rise stuff.

I used low single mount. After mounting mine, I would say that you should have no problem with the mini Leapers, some quality low 2piece 11mm x 30mm WITH RECOIL STOP ( maybe the B Squares ? ) I was about two months on the ring mount question myself!

Anybody check me if I’m wrong, but that’s what I would get. I’m also sure that I can’t go wrong with what I got either.

Well, it will kill a squirrel or a rabbit, and there have been some wild goats (35 lbs) taken with brain shots. But I consider all of that too far out.

If you hunt squirrels with a .177, make it a brain shot and you will do well. I read on other forums where others disagree with me on this, but then those same people admit that they “loose a few” as though loosing game is to be expected. Yes, it happens, but I would never shoot a gun that I knew was going to cause it, even just a little.

The advice given by dws is as good as any I could give you. I use several Leapers minis and I have to say the quality is excellent.

Just one thing – with a one-piece mount, the ring positioning is fixed. If it doesn’t line up with the short clamping area you have on the mini scope, it won’t work. That’s why I go with 2-piece mounts.

BB,I know this ot.But if i wanted to use round ball ammo.In a 9mm airgun like the Career ultra or single shot.What could you use and where would be able to get it?Also when will you be getting 22&45 caliber round ball ammo back in?

That’s going to be tough because I don’t know where you can get a .356 (9mm) round ball. Round balls are made for muzzle loaders, so they follow those calibers. 0.375 is the closest I know of, and it’s too big.

Three days ago my friend and I had to shoot a rapid squirrel that was attacking our pets and we saw it only took 5 bb’s to kill this critter. so i would like to say yes u can kill a small game with a bb gun

To the person who wrote in about killing a”rapid” squirrel with 5 shots from a bb gun. You have proved BB’s point that bb guns should not be used for hunting. Also as a sportsman, one shouldn’t brag or take pride in cruelty to animals. This example of cruelty is exactly what non-hunters and anti- hunting groups use as a reason to ban hunting and firearm ownership. It is a sportsmans responsability to act as stewards of the land and make sure others do the same. It is also the sportspersons duty to only shoot when they are confident that they can hit the target cleanly and make a humane kill. I don’t mean to preach, only pass on a tradition that was passed to me. Jason

I totaly agree with you.Mr.I kill squirrel with 5 shots is not a true sportsman.Even a rat deserves to die humanely.So please dont do that because even though im new to airgunning I know that because of people like you airgunners get bad reputation.

hey bb i wus wondering if my gamo gun that gose 1000 fps with jbs preditor .177 pellets can kill a squirrel if i hit it in the head. i was also wondering if i should hunt them out of trees or shoot them on the ground

dear B.B.ive got a normal .177mm rifle (bb/pellet) and i live in new york (long beach) and im also 13 can anyone give me alittle hint as to getting a small games licsense like….Where? How? How Much? and other things plz write back -Ed

o yeah Ed again and just writing about someones post i killed one out of a tree in my back yard hit him in the eye with a spiked pellet i tried shooting one off the ground but i found out that they blend in to well when u aim up at one the sky is behind it

No, you don’t NEED a scope. But with any rifle, your achieved accuracy (not the gun’s potential, but how well YOU do) will be 50 percent greater if you use a scope. Reason: more precision when aiming. “Aim small; miss small.

You are very wise to ask these questions. The answer is this – yes, it is POSSIBLE to kill both a bird and a squirrel with a powerful BB gun, but no sportsman would ever think of doing it. Steel BBs are inhumane because they do not expand when they pass through flesh and bone. They don’t transmit or transfer as much energy as do lead pellets.

A responsible hunter tries to kill his game as quickly as he can, so there is as little suffering as possible. And a hunter never kills anything he doesn’t intend eating, except for pests like rats, mice and certain birds like pigeons.

That is why I cannot recommend hunting anything with a BB gun, no matter how fast the BB goes. It isn’t humane.

However, the question is stated backwards. BBs aren’t accurate in ANYTHING except the Daisy 499! All other BB guns are area-fire guns, at best!

no offense but that is false info because some of my friends and family as well as myself can hit a cigarett butt at at least 10 yards with a red ryder and we are by no means professionals and the point you made about hunting with pellet guns has alot of info that makes you seem uninformed because if you look 750 fps is not very high power for a pellet gun and many people think that pellet guns are an ideal choice for hunting because of the silence and effectiveness (both cost and accuracy)

im not saying that you are an idiot im just saying you need to do more research before you open your mouth about this kind of thing

B.B.-I am sorry to contradict what you have stated about BB’s being “innaccuarate in anything but the 499″. The 499 has a beautiful accuracy, but the power basically stinks, it might be 400fps at 10 yards (sorry thats a guess not fact), the nice thing about this rifle is that the barrel is probably the best BB barrel in the WORLD. So me being an avid gunsmith looked into airguns just to see (some guy brought a condor to the range, I WAS impressed). So i decided to do some mutalating =). I found a 499 for 75 quid at the range bulletin board, I grabbed my cell and heard ringing in the other room :). So now I had this 499 that I bought for the haggled price of $50 that didn’t work (why it was 50 bucks). I began taking it apart drawing scetches as I went of trigger, and power-works (the action?). I bought a Crosman Quest 1000 for $89.95 from you guys here at Pyramyd Air (what a bargian). Well to cut it all short I interchanged the 499 barrel with the Crosman Quest’s breaking barrel through some rather annoying mechanical problems (the BB sliding down the barrel) I put in some trusty magnets.

I behan to test fire it were I relised two things were COMPLETELY wrong, first accuracy, the sights COULD NOT be lined up. I put in a rather nice Leaper’s scope (not sure of make off the topo of my mind) $69.99 from you. The second problem I encountered was the BB wasn’t be pushed as far as I wanted…Being a gunsmith I know a fair bit about muzzle loaders, Revolutionary M-loaders you put a peice of leather in before the ball, this made a nicer seal. I looked for something I could breech load behind the BB to act as a “semi-cork” to increase velocity. The Beeman Quick Felt Cleaning Pellets (I bought 200 for $12.70) from Pyramid. They looked abit “heafty” to me, I cut maybe 10 in half with a razor blade (nearly cutting my finger) and went outside to give them a test drive.

Once outside I mount the scope and use a “Bore-Sight” to sight in the scope, then pop in a BB, then half of a Felt Pellet, aim at a soda can, and pull the trigger. I hit the can and knocked it clear off the steps but…I remeber doing that with a Red Ryder when I was 9. I grab some targets, and set them up in my basement. I was getting bulls’ eyes each shot, but the felp pellet was going to far with the BB, I cut them into 4th (I cut the halfs into halfs). So NOW the real fun began, I was hitting stainless-steal skillets and putting deep dents into them (the BBs flew back though), I decided to Chrony it. 891 fps, the first shot ripped through the Chrony at 10ft (to keep felt from annoying machine). I heard a woodpecker in my back yard thumping away. He was downed with a clean head shot, the BB was nowhere to be found. The walking back up to the house holding my kill I heard a nutter to my left. I loaded another BB-Felt combo, aimed at the Nutter’s head. I ate GOOD squirrel that night, the BB entered his left eye socket and rattled around in his skull. By the end of the week I bagged 4 more 2 with perfect chest shots.

So for about 240 dollars, I built a KILLER BB gun, maybe the fastest in the world It is still shooting excellent today. If you wish to buy one I will custom make for $500 (with scope and 200 CUT felt pellets [accually 800 after cutting]). I will not Email you directions (they are MINE but $500 and you got yourself ONE HECK OF A RIFLE. Enjoy!

That’s quite a story. I’ve seen a Beeman P1 modified to shoot 1/8″ ball bearings at 640 f.p.s., but your gun takes the prize. Except for the NASA gun with the 100-foot barrel, yours is the fastest I’ve heard of.

I have very little! air rifle knowledge, i have shot a rifle and i can hold and cock quite heavy air rifles and can shoot with and without a scope accurately with the gun i was supplied… i wondered what would be an ideal choice for an air rifle if im usually shooting targets 25-35 yards away sometimes a little more… usually birds or targets no bigger than pigeons or magpies?

Question about looking up “Critter’s Critical Hit” areas. Do you have a specific reference on where to shoot at on animals you plan to kill with a pellet rifle? I had to search several areas just to find a squirrel’s anatomy picture, and even that was a small, grainy image. Perhaps someone makes a map of animals’ anatomy in relating to where to hit it?

this is a little off-topic, but i was wondering if the penetration of my shadow 1000 shooting 8.2 grain gamo hunter pellets seems correct. i hit two squirrels the other day and although the deaths were quick the pellet did not exit the other side. the pellet penetrated about an inch into the squirrel. also, when i shoot medium sized birds (about seven inches long) the pellet does not seem to penetrate either.

sorry, i forgot to mention distances. the squirrels were hit from around 15-20 yards as were the birds. one of the birds was shot in the chest region and the squirrels were hit in the spinal cord and heart.

A 1000fps rated pellet gun with heavy hunting pellets is great for squirrels and birds, and can kill small rabbits with well placed fatal shot.

You CAN kill squirrels with bbs, if they are gamo lead bbs that go in the 1000fps pellet rifles. copper bbs will fall out of the barrel. They are a little less accurate, but they pack a wallop. Good for busting bottles if you have a place for it.

BB Excellent post. Answered a few questions I had, as well as a couple others. I mentioned it before, and would like to know more about any course like you took in Germany on animal anatomy for hunting, etc. (Name of the course or any information). Side question is WHY bb’s are [only] accurate in the Daisy 499. I didn’t think bb’s are accurate in anything but claymore mines. Anyway, thanks for any info. JP

The course may have had a name but I didn’t know what it was. It was taught as part of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between West Germany and the United States.

A German hunter has to take a much more arduous course and pay a LOT more money to hunt, but the German government relaxes the rules for American soldiers, both because we were only there for a short time and because of the language barrier.

Still, we had to learn quite a bit about anatomy, sex determination (I can still tell the difference between a male and female roe deer from hundreds of yards away), and we had to learn some basic customs, how to dress and a small vocabulary of German hunting terms, which are different than standard German words. Blood, for example is not called blut by a hunter, but schweiss (sweat).

Why is the 499 an accurate BB gun? The barrel is precision-ground to very close to the size of a BB. There is little room for the BB to bounce around. In a standard BB gun, the BB is several thousandths smaller than the bore.

I’m new to all this, but just wanted to ask a question on the subject of using BBs in my GAMO Varmint Hunter. I’ve read about the smaller BBs damaging the rifling, but I got some Crosman Copperheads that are labeled as .177s. Would I damage my rifle if I shoot them, or would I just not be as accurate?

Crosman Copperheads ARE NOT 4.5mm/.177. They are 4.3mm/.173 at best. If you doubt me, use a micrometer to measure a BB.

Crosman and all other airgun companies have become sloppy in the labeling of their airgun ammo because they don’t think it matters. Then someone takes them at their word and confusion happens.

Never shoot steel BBs in a barrel not specifically made for them. No high-grade airgun barrel that’s rifled is made to accept steel BBs. Those guns that do accept both steel BBs and lead pellets are all low-priced guns. They have hardened steel barrels and special rifling shaped to minimize the damage caused by steel BBs.

THIS IS ALL WRONG!!i can shoot with my bb gun and hit a squirel dead on in it chest and it will fall out the tree and DIE right then!!you can shoot and kill a squirel with a bb gun it just depends on where you hit it and how good you are to hit it in like its head or in its chest

hi im a 15 years old and living in the uk. bearing in mind i have limited cash supply (around 100 quid)i want a decent spring air rifle that shoots pellets to kill rabbits if thats possible do you have any advise or suggestions on guns or what i can/cant kill with a gun and what type of gun i should use im not new to the shooting thing as i already shoot live game with my father and have shotguns of my own and please keep the terminology simple, im not very “smart” round that area ty. daniel

thanks B.B. i think i might try the bsa comet unless anyone has anything bad that i should know about but i think the age limit is 14+ to own and use an air rifle without permission but you have to be over 18 to purchase the gun and ammunition thanks again daniel

I forgot to say, that I know there's a lot of people that don't even know the best shot placement for birds, squirrels, rats, mice, gophers, & all the most common pests. Although it doesn't take much to take those down, it would be nice to do it as humanely as possible.

I did notice that PA has some new targets that DO show where to hit them properly, which I think is great.

I know how busy you are, so I try to answer as many things as I can to help take the load off, as well as post things that you or others may not now about yet too.

For example… the air Venturi .25 cal. 61 gr. pellets will NOT shoot out of the new Sumatra 2500 500cc PCP.

They fit fine in the mags, but when I pull the trigger, they don't move! Weird when you consider so many other pellets that take some effort to push down into the mag but shoot fine.

I can only contribute that to the fact that these are solid pellets with no skirt to compress on the way out. They have the same problem with my Troy Adams .25 cal. MK1. I had to send 7 tins back, which sucks, because I really like the idea of a 61 gr. solid pellet screaming out of that Sumatra. I suppose PA will have to lessen the diameter of them, but then you'd have to use a make shift wad to hold them in the mags, if you wanted to keep some mags preloaded with them.

Looks like I'll have to stick with the Eun Jins for now, until they resolve that.

I know who makes those & that he's a busy guy, so I hope he doesn't just trash the concept, & instead fixes them.

Hey, I have a daisy powerline 35. I have gone hunting many time with it using bbs. I was wondering if this as an adequate rifle for hunting, would you suggest it, what affordable guns would you suggest? thanks alot

At the top of the page, click on "need advice?" and study what they say. I recommend this approach because I don't know your price point or tastes. By the way, this Blog is 5 years old and only a few of us monitor these older blogs. Come over to http://www.airgun-academy.pyramydair.com/blog

The reason a BB gun isn't appropriate for hunting is the BB doesn't expand. So it punches a small hole through the game and causes painful wounds that aren't humane.

Your rifle can also use lead pellets, which are by far more appropriate for hunting. However, the Powerline 35 doesn't have sufficient power for killing animals like squirrels and rabbits in a humane (quick and painless) way.

Generally speaking an airsoft gun cannot kill a small animal, but they can really hurt it. I don't recommend shooting any animal with a gun unless you intend killing it. I do understand that people use airsoft guns to discourage neighbor dogs from pooping in their flower beds, but I don't recommend them for that use.

when I was a young boy I learned to hunt with a BB gun,many of us have,we learned gun safety and ways to stalk animals and enjoy the outdoors. The guy is right a BB will not kill anything except maybe a pest bird,which my wife did last year,and I will add is was a Red Ryder Kill,however they are not designed for hunting and as he said they will only cause the animal pain. As I grew older my dad got me a .22 and that is the gun to hunt with,the BB and Pellet guns fell beside the way,however by the time I got it I was a teenager and was a better hunter than most grown men. You may ask why,its simple the BB gun and moreless play hunting taught me much. My uncle got a a Sheridan Pellet Rifle when I was 15,I kind of laughed at it,but it had the hitting power of a .22 short from close range say 50 feet. It amazed me as it breezed threw a 2×4 board,it is not a toy,and if you are serious about air guns it will put anything out there to shame,and yes you can hunt small game with this gun.

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